Kabul Suicide Attack Near US Embassy Kills At Least 4, Injures Several

Days after a car bomb attack was reported in Afghanistan's southern province of Helmand, another explosion rocked the Afghan capital on Tuesday. The blast that took place near Massoud Square in Kabul that houses the U.S. embassy and several other western diplomatic buildings killed at least four people, reports said.

The explosion took place in front of Kabul Bank, which is in close proximity to the U.S. embassy, Afghanistan's Interior Ministry spokesman Najib Danish was quoted as saying in reports. Sources said several people were believed to have got injured in the explosion that was reported around 10: 15 a.m. local time (3:15 a.m. EDT).

Bilal Sarwary, a journalist, tweeted: "There was a suicide attack in front of Kabul Bank. We believe 1 or more attackers got inside the bank, a police officer in PD9 tells me. (sic)"

Mohammad Salim Rasouli, chief of Kabul hospitals at the Afghan Health Ministry, said nine people may have got injured in the attack. However, he said the casualty toll could rise further, CBS News reported.

Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack and said the suicide bomber targeted the privately-owned Kabul Bank. Its spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said the suicide bomber targeted the “military side” of the bank where police and soldiers get their salaries. But according to a reporter for CBS News, the bank does not have a separate segment for military people.

The group often targets banks in Afghanistan particularly toward the month end when civil servants and military personnel gather there to collect their salaries. It also carries out attacks ahead of major Muslim holidays.

On Sunday, another explosion in a car in Afghanistan’s southern province of Helmand killed at least 13 people and injured dozens, reports said. Attackers targeted a military vehicle in the Nawa district, an area that has been witnessing heavy fighting in recent weeks. Both soldiers and civilians were injured in the attack, government sources said.

In June, at least seven people were killed and more than 119 were injured in three separate explosions at a high-profile funeral in the Afghan capital, according to reports. The funeral was held for one of the protesters killed during a large rally which was held few days prior to the explosion.

In May, one of the deadliest explosions struck the capital when a truck bomb devastated a central area of the city near the presidential palace and foreign embassies killing more than 80 people and injuring more than 100. This attack reminded everyone how Kabul had become a lethal battlefield, the New York Times reported.

“The attack demonstrates a complete disregard for civilians and reveals the barbaric nature of the enemy faced by the Afghan people,” Gen. John W. Nicholson Jr., the commander of American and NATO forces in Afghanistan, said in a statement. However, he praised the Afghan security forces for preventing the truck from entering the area which also houses the headquarters of coalition forces.